This open source software facilitates creation and development of secure email list services for user communities.
SELS or Secure Email List Services is a software platform that provides both signature and encryption capabilities while ensuring that the List Server does not have access to email plain text. Developed using available open-source components, SELS is compatible with many commonly used email clients. It is based on the Open PGP or Pretty Good Privacy standard.
If you subscribe to a SELS-capable email list, you will be assigned a pair of digital keys. One key is used to open and read messages, while the other is a proxy key stored in the list server's key management system (or keyring). This key re-encrypts every signed and encrypted email that the member sends to the list. Even if the list server or intermediary network is compromised, the email content is not visible to the attacker.
The best part is that list participants don't have to install custom email clients to use SELS. Commonly available plugins from GNU Privacy Guard (GnuPG) provide compatibility with several commonly used email clients, including Mozilla Thunderbird, MacMail, Microsoft Outlook 2003, Mutt, and Emacs.
SELS is ideal for any group, community, or organization that needs to provide a secure email discussion list for its members. Currently, cybersecurity professionals at NCSA and other NSF-supported large-scale computing facilities are testing and using SELS. They detect, respond to, and prevent intrusions into thousands of systems used for research and development, including many of the world's fastest supercomputers.
Groups that could benefit from using SELS include system administrators and security professionals involved in site security and incident response, academic researchers collaborating on a confidential project or proposal, companies safeguarding online discussions involving proprietary information, financial institutions collecting or disseminating sensitive information or conducting private transactions, healthcare organizations needing to communicate quickly and securely with medical personnel during an emergency, and educators interested in providing their students with a hands-on demonstration of encrypted communication and practical uses of cryptography.
If you subscribe to a SELS-capable email list, you will be assigned a pair of digital keys. One key is used to open and read messages, while the other is a proxy key stored in the list server's key management system (or keyring). This key re-encrypts every signed and encrypted email that the member sends to the list. Even if the list server or intermediary network is compromised, the email content is not visible to the attacker.
The best part is that list participants don't have to install custom email clients to use SELS. Commonly available plugins from GNU Privacy Guard (GnuPG) provide compatibility with several commonly used email clients, including Mozilla Thunderbird, MacMail, Microsoft Outlook 2003, Mutt, and Emacs.
SELS is ideal for any group, community, or organization that needs to provide a secure email discussion list for its members. Currently, cybersecurity professionals at NCSA and other NSF-supported large-scale computing facilities are testing and using SELS. They detect, respond to, and prevent intrusions into thousands of systems used for research and development, including many of the world's fastest supercomputers.
Groups that could benefit from using SELS include system administrators and security professionals involved in site security and incident response, academic researchers collaborating on a confidential project or proposal, companies safeguarding online discussions involving proprietary information, financial institutions collecting or disseminating sensitive information or conducting private transactions, healthcare organizations needing to communicate quickly and securely with medical personnel during an emergency, and educators interested in providing their students with a hands-on demonstration of encrypted communication and practical uses of cryptography.
What's New
Version 1.0: N/A